hadriel_logs | Event Log: Fadeout

Who: Everyone participating in the event!
What: The event log for the Fadeout event!
Where: All around the city
When: November 15th-November 25th
Warnings: None!

The morning of November the 15th seems rather normal- that is, if you can avoid the glowing cracks in the fabric of reality tucked away among various streets. Still, they don't really seem to be doing much of anything and you can't quite see through them, so maybe they're decoration? This wouldn't be the first time the gods pulled some weird shit to shake things up around here.

By midafternoon, however, something changes. Cecily, in all her wisdom, decides to attempt to dispel one of these rifts, and the resulting shockwave sends tremors through the city. Tears throughout Hadriel open wider and allow for various demons to burst through and terrorize the various citizens. Demons will be tearing through in all corners of the city, though you can choose to avoid them if you like.

Look out for Pride and Rage demons, who attempt to brute force their way to you and feed off of your anger, steel yourselves against Despair and Fear demons who grow stronger as you give up hope, and definitely cross the street to avoid the Desire demons, who can take either male or female forms and will offer you everything you want if you just let them in.

Demons will either focus on attacking you or tempting you by taking advantage of and feeding off of your basic emotions. Agreeing to let a demon help you and mentally folding to it generally means that the demon will begin to possess you and start calling the shots- often using you as a vessel to hurt others and sow discord. If you happen to have any sort of magical abilities, extended possession can lead toward becoming an abomination after the corruption takes root.

So... you might want to avoid all of that. Luckily, there are some good things happening that can distract you- along with the demons, several nugs and fennec foxes will also pop up around the city, and if you don't want them to die a horrible death to a hungry demon, you might consider adopting them. In addition, you may find a random potion laying around- maybe this can help you fight off those demons, or maybe it'll make every nug in the city love you- or maybe it's secretly a jar of bees. Wouldn't be the first time you guys let bees in jars get a little out of hand.

► This log covers November 15th-November 25th.
► Feel free to make your own logs as well
► Please tag headers of threads with content warnings where they apply
► Please put your character's name and open/closed in the subject line of your starters!
► If you are murdered by a demon, become an abomination, turn your insides to sludge with a potion, or just throw yourself from a rooftop to end it all, please let us know here!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Ah, finally - the mage makes an appearance. This one has stronger magic than the body the demon chose to possess, but this body was its way in, because the person who inhabited it wanted more and was thus easier to persuade.

The demon has Mello's body draped across the living room couch when Near passes by - not entirely out of character for Mello, as he tends to sprawl more than sit. What is notable, however, is the almost cheerful way he speaks - which is unusual for Mello in general, but especially so when talking to Near.

"Hey, sleepyhead," he almost purrs, "it's nice of you to finally join us." There's a grin stretched across Mello's face, and that's another highly unusual thing to observe. No one would know that better than Near.

He stops short at the tone, even as he half-convinces himself that his sleep-clouded mind is affecting his perceptions. Mello never sounds that cheerful, at least not around him.

Still, half-convinced is only half and so he looks in Mello's direction for a more complete picture of the situation -- and his mind instantly wakes up. That smile is not normal, but more than that, the scar is missing, and that's a glaring discrepancy. This new alertness is visible in a slight widening of his eyes, a tension in his shoulders.

"That's awfully friendly of you." His voice is more than distant; it's cold, guarded.

Something is incredibly wrong here.

He shrugs lazily, then leans back into the back of the couch, throwing a bent arm over the top of it. "Shouldn't we be friends? We're living together, after all. Maybe it's time to let bygones be bygones. Wouldn't you like that, Near?"

The demon knows what Mello remembers of the revelation from just a few months ago, that Near actually liked him and wanted to work together instead of being at ridiculous and constant odds as they had been, in the place where they existed before they were brought here. It's not much of a stretch to make such a suggestion.

He likes Mello just fine. But trust is another matter, and the idea that they could be friends has never been something he's seriously entertained. Friendship is a borderline alien concept to Near. The words sound nice on the surface, but they are not anything Mello would say with any sincerity behind them. Nothing happening has done anything to assuage Near's feeling that this situation is not normal.

"What happened to your face?"

None of the magic he's taught can heal or hide the scar.

The demon laughs, and in Mello's voice, coming out of Mello's throat, it sounds entire discordant and wrong. "Don't you like it? I learned a new trick." He tosses his hair over his shoulder, slowly dragging two ungloved fingers down the left side of his face. "I could show you, if you want. Teach you something new, for a change."

Of course, that something would involve ceding power to the demon. Not so much something to be taught as something given, something the demon could take.

The movements are all wrong and the offer is all wrong. Mello does not make offers like that, at least absent of dictating the price in the same breath. Near's posture tightens more, an indication of mounting tension.

"And where is it you learned this trick?"

He is agreeing to nothing. No, he's far more interested in the circumstances of this development.

He tips his head to the side, still smiling, staring Near down the way a cat does when it's sighted a wounded bird and is ready to pounce. "Well, I can't very well tell you everything, can I? It's no fun if you're just given the answer to a puzzle, right?"

He sits forward on the couch, arms bent across his legs. "And I know how much you like puzzles."

He has an instinctive impulse to step back at that smile, but he quells it. He will not be cowed.

"I'm not in the habit of accepting things from sources that I do not trust." His mind is working, reviewing recent happenings, network conversations, searching for some way to explain this shift in Mello's behaviour. It doesn't fit neatly into the influence of any of the gods.

And then he hits on it, his expression growing colder as he realizes what must be happening. Demon possession. Mello had been foolish enough to make a deal?

"And I certainly don't trust the words of a demon."

Ah, well. Enough playing, then. Something in the smile on Mello's face sharpens, turns sinister. His voice takes on a hard edge when he speaks again.

"You say that like it's such a terrible thing, mage."

Being a demon is perfectly fine, thanks.

Event Log: Fadeout

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